Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 14 to pursue a career in country music. She signed with the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's self-titled debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. Her third single, "Our Song," made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number-one song on the Hot Country Songs chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 2008 Grammy Awards. Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in 2008. Buoyed by the pop crossover success of the singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me," Fearless became the best-selling album of 2009 in the United States. The album won four Grammy Awards, making Swift the youngest ever Album of the Year winner. Swift's third and fourth albums, 2010's Speak Now and 2012's Red, both sold more than one million copies within the first week of their U.S release. Speak Now's "Mean" won two Grammy Awards, while Red's singles "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and "I Knew You Were Trouble" were worldwide hits. Swift's fifth album, the pop-focused 1989, was released in 2014 and sold more copies in its opening week than any album in the previous 12 years, making Swift the first and only act to have three albums sell more than one million copies in the opening release week. The singles "Shake It Off", "Blank Space", and "Bad Blood" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Swift is known for narrative songs about her personal experiences. As a songwriter, she has been honored by the Nashville Songwriters Association and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Swift's other achievements include seven Grammy Awards, 22 Billboard Music Awards, 11 Country Music Association Awards, eight Academy of Country Music Awards, and one Brit Award. She is one of the best-selling artists of all time, having sold more than 40 million albums—including 27.1 million in the U.S.—and 130 million single downloads. Swift has also had supporting roles in feature films including Valentine's Day (2010) and The Giver (2014). In 2015, Swift became the youngest woman ever to be included on Forbes' "100 Most Powerful Women" list, ranking at number 64. __TOC__ Impact and recognition Swift's work has received praise from veteran artists. Bill Withers says: "She's clever. Being a songwriter, I can appreciate her wit. She deserves all of her success." Neil Young describes her as "a great writer": "I like Taylor Swift. I like listening to her. I kind of like watching her respond to all the attacks. I like the ways she's defining herself. So I keep my eye on it." Stephen Stills defended Swift's confessional writing style: "That's what you do as a songwriter ... Wear your heart on your sleeve, then just write about it. Fuck 'em. If I was young, I would be one of Taylor Swift's conquests." James Taylor, who performed with Swift on two occasions, said that "we just hit it off. I loved her songs, and her presence on stage was so great." Elvis Costello remarked: "I think she is quite interesting ... You can see a degree of self-possession there, and I'm intrigued by that." Judy Collins points to Swift as an example of a current star who is continuing on the lineage of being an independent-minded artist.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taylor_Swift#cite_note-373Steve Earle said of 1989: "It's a really good record! She's a real songwriter." In regard to Swift, Kristofferson said that "she blows me away. It's amazing to me that someone so young is writing such great songs. She's got a great career ahead of her." Janis Ian notes that Swift "changed the face of music, songwriting and guitar playing for girls ... There is an authenticity there." Nicks believes Swift writes "songs that make the whole world sing, like Neil Diamond or Elton John." She remarked that the younger singer's "Today Was A Fairytale" has "stayed in my heart forever. And it just reminds me of me in a lot of ways." Lindsey Buckingham named Swift as a current artist who may have the staying power of Fleetwood Mac: "I actually like Taylor Swift. I admire what she’s been able to do." Jon Bon Jovi describes her as "the real deal in every way, shape and form. She's a writer, she's a singer, she's a beautiful girl ... Like, she's going to be around." Parton is "extremely impressed with her, especially with her songwriting ... I'm real impressed with the depth of her sometimes. She's got the qualities that could last a long time." Etheridge remarks: "I love her soul, her spirit. I think she's going to surprise people and I think she's going to be around for a long time." Swift has also received songwriting praise from contemporaries. Mayer was a supporter of Swift's early career—the duo recorded a duet and performed in concert together on two occasions: "You could put her in a time machine in any era and she would have a hit record." Ryan Adams described her as one of the "most fucking amazing writers I’ve ever seen. I’ve sat in this room with her before and heard a song she was constructing on the spot and it was unbelievable. It was pure alchemy." Kathleen Hanna is "totally into Taylor Swift. I think she has super-clever lyrics, and I love that she writes her own music." Shirley Manson remarked that Swift is "exceedingly talented at songwriting ... She drew her own door and walked right through it. We should applaud her balls for bucking the system. That's what artists are supposed to do." Lena Dunham, the creator and star of HBO's television series Girls, has described Swift as her "artistic kindred spirit." She also received praise from Drake, Tegan and Sara, Grimes, Kesha, Katy Perry, Kelly Clarkson and Lady Gaga. Product endorsements While promoting her debut album, Swift appeared as a spokesmodel for l.e.i. jeans and as the face of Verizon Wireless' Mobile Music campaign. In the Fearless era, she launched a l.e.i. sundress range at Wal-Mart, and designed American Greetings cards and Jakks Pacific dolls. She became a spokesperson for the NHL's Nashville Predators and Sony Cyber-shot digital cameras. She performed in a commercial for the Band Hero video game, with Rivers Cuomo, Pete Wentz and Travis Barker appearing as her backing band. In the Speak Now era, she released a special edition of her album through Target. Swift became a CoverGirl spokesmodel, launched two Elizabeth Arden fragrances, Wonderstruck and Wonderstruck Enchanted. While promoting her fourth album Red, Swift offered exclusive album promotions through Target, Papa John's Pizza and Walgreens. She became a spokesmodel for Diet Coke and Keds sneakers, released her third Elizabeth Arden fragrance titled Taylor by Taylor Swift, and continued her partnerships with Sony Electronics and American Greetings. Swift also partnered with a number of companies during the Red Tour; AirAsia and Qantas acted as the official airlines for the Australian and Asian legs, while Cornetto sponsored the Asian leg of the tour. While promoting 1989, Swift had tie-ins with Subway, Keds, Target and Diet Coke. In 2014, Swift released her fourth fragrance Incredible Things. Philanthropy Swift's philanthropic efforts have been recognized by the Do Something Awards, The Giving Back Fund and the Tennessee Disaster Services. In 2012, Michelle Obama presented Swift with The Big Help Award for her "dedication to helping others" and "inspiring others through action." Also that year, Kerry Kennedy of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights presented Swift with the Ripple of Hope Award because of her "dedication to advocacy at such a young age ... Taylor is just the kind of woman we want our daughters to be." Swift is a supporter of arts education. In 2010, she donated $75,000 to Nashville's Hendersonville High School to help refurbish the school auditorium's sound and lighting systems. In 2012, she pledged $4 million to fund the building of a new education center at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville. The 7,500-square-foot building opened in 2014 and will facilitate new programs and workshops for teenagers and senior citizens. The space includes three classrooms and an exhibit space, and houses interactive activities such as a musical petting zoo and a "wet" classroom space to make concert posters and other art projects. Museum officials named it The Taylor Swift Education Center and the singer is involved in an advisory capacity. Also in 2012, Swift partnered with textbook rental company Chegg to donate $60,000 to the music departments of six US colleges. In 2013, Swift donated $100,000 to the Nashville Symphony. Swift promotes children's literacy. In 2009, she donated $250,000 to various schools around the country that she had either attended or had other associations with. The money was used to buy books, fund educational programs and help pay teachers' salaries. In 2010, she took part in a live webcast, Read Now! with Taylor Swift, broadcast exclusively in US schools to celebrate Scholastic's Read Every Day campaign. In 2011, Swift donated 6,000 Scholastic books to Reading Public Library, Pennsylvania and, in 2012, she donated 14,000 books to Nashville Public Library, Tennessee. Most of the books were placed in circulation; the rest were given to children from low-income families, preschools and daycare centers. In 2012, she co-chaired the National Education Association's Read Across America campaign and recorded a encouraging children to read.447 Also in 2012, Swift promoted the "power of reading" in a second live Scholastic webcast, broadcast directly to US classrooms. In 2013, through the Reach Out and Read initiative, she donated 2,000 Scholastic books to the Reading Hospital Child Health Center's early literacy program. In 2014, she appeared in a READ campaign and took part in another Scholastic webcast, broadcast in US classrooms. Also that year, she donated all proceeds from her song "Welcome to New York" to New York City Public Schools. Throughout her career, Swift has donated money for helping victims of natural disasters. In 2008, she donated the proceeds from her merchandise sales at the Country Music Festival to the Red Cross's disaster relief fund. Later that year, she donated $100,000 to the Red Cross to help the victims of the Iowa flood of 2008. In 2009, Swift supported the Victorian Bushfire Appeal by joining the lineup at Sydney's Sound Relief concert, reportedly making the biggest contribution of any artist to the Australian Red Cross. In 2010, she took part in the Hope for Haiti telethon; she performed and answered phone calls from viewers wishing to donate money. She also recorded a song for the Hope for Haiti Now album. In response to the May 2010 Tennessee floods, Swift donated $500,000 during a telethon hosted by WSMV. Later that year, she donated $100,000 to help rebuild a playground in Hendersonville, Tennessee which was damaged by floodwater.460 In 2011, Swift used the final dress rehearsal for the North American leg of her Speak Now tour as a benefit concert for victims of recent tornadoes in the United States, raising more than $750,000. She also donated $250,000 to Alabama football coach Nick Saban's charity, Nick's Kids, to aid in the tornado relief efforts of West Alabama. In 2012, Swift supported Architecture for Humanity's Restore the Shore MTV telethon in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Swift opposes LGBT discrimination. Following the 2008 murder of Larry King, she recorded a Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network PSA to combat hate crimes. On the first anniversary of King's death, Swift told Seventeen that her parents taught her "never to judge others based on whom they love, what color their skin is, or their religion." In 2011, the music video for Swift's anti-bullying song "Mean" dealt in part with homophobia in high schools; the video was later nominated for an MTV VMA social activism award. The New York Times believes she is part of "a new wave of young (and mostly straight) women who are providing the soundtrack for a generation of gay fans coming to terms with their identity in a time of turbulent and confusing cultural messages." The singer is involved with a number of charities which provide services to sick children. In 2008, she donated a pink Chevy pick-up truck to the Victory Junction Gang Camp; the truck is used to transport sick children from the airport to the camp. In 2011, as the Academy of Country Music's Entertainer of the Year, Swift donated $25,000 to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Tennessee. This figure was matched by the Academy. In 2012, Swift participated in the Stand Up to Cancer telethon, performing "Ronan", a song she wrote in memory of a four-year-old boy who died of neuroblastoma. The song was made available for digital download, with all proceeds donated to cancer-related charities. In 2014, she donated $100,000 to the V Foundation for Cancer Research and $50,000 to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Swift has met with many sick fans through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. She has also made private visits to hospitals such as St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the Ronald McDonald House, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Children's Hospital & Medical Center and Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. Swift has encouraged young people to volunteer in their local community as part of Global Youth Service Day. In 2007, she launched a campaign to protect children from online predators, in partnership with the Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police. Also in 2007, she supported an Allstate campaign which promotes safe teenage driving. In 2009, Swift recorded a Sound Matters PSA to make listeners aware of the importance of listening "responsibly." She appeared in a Got Milk? campaign in 2010. Swift has donated auctionable items to a large number of charities, including the Elton John AIDS Foundation, the UNICEF Tap Project, Oxfam International, Habitat for Humanity, MusiCares and Feeding America. She has also performed at a number of benefit concerts, including for the Food Bank For New York City, and Shriners Hospitals for Children. In 2015, Swift donated to a firefighter (via GoFundMe), who had mounting medical bills after saving his own family. On July 8, Swift also donated $50,000 to a young girl named Naomi battling leukemia through GoFundMe as well, making Swift the largest donor in the service's history. As a result of Swift's action, GoFundMe's new donation cap is $50,000 in a single transaction. "Taylor Swift's donation was so generous that it required us to increase the donation limit on the platform," said GoFundMe CEO Rob Solomon in a statement on the company's website.